Absorbent dressing package



May 13, 1958 c. 1. RICKARD ET AL ABSORBENT DRESSING P CKAGE Filed. June5. 1956 r rates ice ABSURBENT DRESSIFN G PACKAG-ll Charlotte li. Richardand John C. Biletzinger, Neenah,

Vi'is., assignors to Kimberly-Clark Corporation, a corporation ofDelaware Application June 5, 1956, Serial No. 589,527

8 Claims. (Cl. 206-632) This invention relates to 'a cellulosic productand more specihcally to an abso-rbent bandage, especially a socalledmaternity pad.

in many hospitals, When obstetrical and other patients becomearnbulatory they are required to care for themselves as much as possibleso as to relieve the dernands on nurses' time. Among the duties placedupon the patient when she becomes able, is to bathe herself and tochange as needed, the absorbent ciressing or maternity pad Which sheWears.

Common practice in respect of the changing of absorbent dressings, hasbeen for a nurse to remove a folded sterile dressing from a canister bymeans of a sterile forcep and, sirnilarly, to withdraw from a containersterile cotton wads or balls and place the same inside the folded pad.The folded pad and cotton ball assembly is given to the patient Whomakes her own change. The cotton wads or balls are used for wipingpurposes. Most hospitals pro-lribit the disposal of the pads and cottonballs through toilet facilities because they frequently cause stoppagesin the plumbing system. For disposal of the used pad and cotton balls,the patient is usually given a folded newspaper or paper bag in which toplace the used material. The nurses are required to collect the packagesof used material for disposal in incinerators or other facilities. Thiscommon practice, especially the preparation and distribution of thesterile pad and wiping material, takes up a substantial amount of nursestime which can normally be put to much better use.

The used wiping material is very wet with stringy lochia and it is veryditiicult to handle. It is much more important that the Wet vvipingmaterial be readily disposable by being dropped in the toilet than thatthe used maternity pad be so disposable. The pad, upon removal from thebody can be folded on itself to enclose the accurnulated lochia and thusreadily handled and placed in a container. The wiping material does notlend itself to such treatment and is quite messy to handle; hence, itsdisposal lay dropping in a toilet during the Cleansing proccss offers amuch preferred method of disposal and would be advantageous even thoughsuch -disposal of the pad itself is not permissable,

The object of the present invention is to provide an absorbent dressingpackage, for example, a maternity pad package, which can be supplied tothe patient without requiring the services of a nurse or at least Withmuch less nurses time than has been required to furnish the patient witha sterile pad and cotton balls according to the Conventional practiceabove described; to provide a. maternity paci package which will providethe patient With all of the berleiits of the described Conventionalnurseraade or otherwise prepared pad and cotton ball assembly and whichwill provide wiping material which may be disposed of through the usualtoilet facilities, sometimes together with the maternity pad itself; toprovide an absorbent banclage or maternity pad which, together withsuitable wiping material, may be furnished to a atient in sterilecondition and in such an arrangement that the pad and Wiping elementsmay be handled by the patient With a minimum danger of contarninatingany of the elements; and to provide an absorberit bandage and Wipingmaterial package which may be supplied in sterile condition by themanufacturer and which Will require only ordinary precautions tomaintain its sterility until it is put to use.

Other objects and advantages of the invention will be understood byreference to the following specification and accompanying drawing inwhich a selected ernbodiment of the invention is described andillustrated.

in the drawing:

Fig. 1 is a perspective illustration of one form of the packageaccording to the present invention;

Fig. 2 is a perspective illustration of the content of the package shownin Figure l as it appears when initially removed from the package;

T `ig. 3 illustrates a step in using the structure represented in Pig.2;

Fig. 4 illustrates a modified arrangement; and,

Figs. 5, 6 and 7 are perspective illustrations of successive steps inthe preparation of one of the vviping elements which is associated Withthe absorbent pad to form the structures represented in Figs. 2 and 4,Figs'. 6 and 7 being on a larger scale than Fig. 5.

Fig. 8 is a perspective illustration of a moditication.

A package-d rnaternity pad or similar absorbent dressing according tothe present invention, comprises a suitable pad t which is of properdimensions for its intended purpose and Which is made of materials toprovide the required absorbency and absorbing capacity. This pad may bemade primarily of cellulose iiber, commonly known as iitlff, whichresernbles cotton iiber in general appearance except that the flutlffibers are generally very short. instead of iiutf, the pad may be madeof a multiplicity of superposed plies of absorbent crepe tissue, or ofcombinations of crepe Wedding and ilutf, or any other preferredmaterial. in this instance, the pad 1 is an all iluff pad contained in ajacket of creped wadding material and, as illustrated, it is ofgenerally rectangular form; however, this is not essential and the padmay have rounded or otherwise tapered ends and the thickness of the padmay be tapered toward the ends of the pad if preferred, and other shapesmay be used.

The pad ll is enclosed in a Wrapper 2 which is here represented as beingof suitably open mesh gauze for example, gauze of 14 x 10 threadconstruction. The Wrapper is folded transversely around the length ofthe pad and has overlapped margins as indicated at Za on the outer faceof the pad, i. 6., the pad face which is worn away from the body. TheWrapper 2 may be of such length that it extends beyond the ends of thepacl to provide tubular end extensions or tabs 3 and 4 Which areemployed for supporting. the pad by attachment to a garntent, a sanitarybelt or the like.- The details of construction of the absorbent bandagecomprising the pad 31 and Wrapper 2 may vary widely from those describedwhich are only representative and not.

pendent two ply, crepe tissue Sheets are provided, but.

any othernumber may be provided and they may be of single, double orother lural ply construction as may be preferred.

The tissue Sheets in the assemblag 8 are each folded In the arrange- Vupon themselves in the manner represented in Figures 5 to 7 inclusive.In Figure 5 there is illustrated a square or rectangular tissue sheet 9of one or more plies, said sheet being folded upon itself in zigzag formas represented in Figure 6 to form opposite narrow re-folded margins 10on opposite sides of the sheet, a center web 11, and oppositely facingV-folded portions 12, 12 intermediate the opposite sides of the centralweb 11 and the respective marginal folds 10. Figure 6 represents thezigzag folded sheet in slightly open condition for purposes ofillustration but it is to be unde'rstood that the sheet will be foldedso that the portions 10, 11 and 12 will be in intimate, face-to-faceengagement.

The zigzag folded and fiattened sheet represented in Figure 6 is nextfolded on itself intermediate its ends, as at 13 to provide a foldedsheet 14 as represented in Figure 7. The desired number of Sheets foldedas in Figure 7 are assembled one on top of the other to form the pad orstack 8 of wiping Sheets.

In the arrangement shown in Figures 2 and 3, the absorbent pad 1 withits enclosing Wrapper 2 is folded upon itself approximately midway ofits length as at 5 to form the folded pad 161 represented in Figure 2.When the tabs 3 and 4 are provided, they are preferably folded back overthe opposite outside faces of the folded pad as shown in connection withthe tab 3 in Figures 2 and 3. The stack 8 of wiping members areositioned between the folds or sections 6 and 7 of the folded pad.

A folded pad la (Fig. 2) containing a plurality. of wiping membersbetween its folds is enclosed in an envelope, Wrapper or other container15. This envelope may be made of any suitable material and in thisexample it is made of paper folded into and secured in tube-like form toreceive the package content.` End portions 16 and 17 of the envelopeproject axially beyond the opposite ends of the folded pad Ill and aretapered to their extremities which are Sealed closed in any suitablemanner, for example, by`rneans of adhesive on the inside of marginal endportions of the wrapper tube which are tiattened and pressed together toform end closures as represented at 18. This fiattening may be elfectedby pressure applied in spaced, narrow Zones 19 as illustrated or in anyother suitable manner. The side walls 20 of the Wrapper have their endportions folded and tucked inwardly in the form of gussets such asrepresented at 21 so that the package presents a neat appearance withneatly tapered closed ends.

The material of which the envelope is made, should be selected frommaterials which can withstand any sterilizing operations to which thepackage may be sub- V jected, and which material is capable ofpreserving the sterility of the content of the package for a suitableperiod of time. The end closures 18 should also be made in such a mannerthat they will also serve the indicated purpose of maintaining sterilityof the package content.

An absorbent dressing package containing a folded pad and a stack 8 ofwiping Sheets or tissues in the form represented in Figure 2, may befurnished in sterile condition to a atient. The atient opens the packageby tearing off an end portion of the envelope along a line such 'asrepresented at 22 which may be rinted on the Wrapper or otherwiseindicated. This marking is preferably associated with the envelope endwhich is adjacent to the folded end 5 of the pad.

When the container is opened as above explained, the folded end of thepad may be gripped between the iingers and withdrawn from the envelope15, only the outside surfaces of the pad which are Worn away from thebody being engaged by the tingers. Hence, there is no signilicant dangerof contaminating the body side area of the pad when removing it from theenvelope. The pad in the folded condition represented in Figure 2 may bethen permitted to partially unfold to the condition represented inFigure 3 without touching the inside or body side 23 of the pad. The tab4 is shown depending from the pad end in Figure 3 merely for purposes ofillustration and it will normally be held against the outside or bottomof the pad portion 7 when the pad is held in the hand and opened to thecondition shown in Figure 3. The normal resiliency of the folded padWill usually cause it to unfold to the condition shown in Figure 3 butif necessary, such unfolding may be aided by lifting the upper portionof the pad through the agency of the overlying tab 3 to avoidcontamination of the more Vital body engaging area 23 of the pad.

When the pad is unfolded to the open condition shown in Figure 3, theedges 24 and 25 of the then top wiping sheet 14 are exposed and make itVery easy to lift the margin 10 or V-folded portion 12 to permit suchliplil e sheet portion to be easily grasped to facilitate use of the topsheet 14. The opposite faces of the lip-like portions provided by theV-fold-formed portions 12, present portions of the same side or face ofthe Sheet to manual engagement. This avoids contamination of theopposite face of the sheet which may be applied to the body. Byinserting a tinger under the fold 12 near the folded end 13 of thesheet, and gripping said fold 12 in the adjacent area, the sheet will begripped near the middle of an 'edge of the sheet and this advantageouslylocates the sheet for easy and effective manipulation and use.

The wiping sheet fold 12 which presents said edge 25 provides a two-plyportion of the sheet and therefore greater strength than the Single plymargin 10. The slightly rounded fold-formed edge 25 of said sheetportion 12 makes the latter more readily separable from the underlyingportion of the sheet than the single thickness edge 24 of the margin 10so that a a ractical matter there is a normal tendency to remove the topsheet by grasping said two ply fold 12 which is somewhat preferred;however, the presence of the two accessible folds 10 and 12 providespractical insurance that one thereof will always be readily liftable topermit grasping thereof.

The described manner of folding the wiping Sheets provides accessiblefolds and edges on both faces of the folded sheet So that the pad la maybe unfolded to position the stack of wiping Sheets on either of itsportions 6 or 7 with the wiping Sheets presenting said readilyaccessible portions on their top Sides. It is therefore unnecessary toexercise special care to unfold the pad in a fixed direction.

The envelope 15 is of such size that the folded pad may be easilyremoved from the container as already explained. However, the size ofsaid envelope is such that it holds the pad in the folded conditionshown in Figure 2 in which the stack 8 of wiping Sheets is grippedbetween the sections 6 and 7 of the folded pad and thereby held inplace; there is but little if any possibility of the wiping Sheetsbecoming disarranged or displaced from the folded pad.

The specific form of wiping sheet fold shown in Figures 4 to 7 inclusiveis not essential to the use of the invention. Other forms of folding maybe prepared which will offer readily accessible gripping portions suchas described. The wiping Sheets may be of any desired material which,like the above described creped tissue material, is generally disposablethrough ordinary toilet facilities.

While the use of wiping elements which comprise folded tissues asdescribed in the foregoing, is a preferred mannet of practicing thepresent invention and has the advantage as noted above, other types ofwiping elements may be used in certain instances. For example, when theproblem of disposing of the wiping element is not a rimaryconsideration, wiping, members which consist of balls or pads 1411 (Fig.8) of absorbent iiber such as cotton and rayon may be used. A suitablenumber of such wiping members may be assembled in layer form asillustrated in Figure 8, or in any other suitable manner between thefolded pad sections 6 and 7. Fiber members of the indicated characterare easily compressible between the pad sections 6 and 7 so that eventhough they present substantial thickness when lutlfed up for use, theydo not necessarily increase the overall thickness of the assembledwiping members and folded pad as compared with the assembled foldedtissues and folded pad.

In some instances, it may be preferred to arrange the folded wipingmaterial, such as the tissue Sheets 14 or the fiber members 1461, on theoutside of the folded or unfolded pad so that they are accessiblewithout unfolding or opening the pad, Such an arrangement is illustratedin Figure 4 where the stack 8 of folded tissues is shown in position onthe top of the uppermost fold 6 of the folded pad la. It is preferred inthat arrange- Inent to place the wiping members under the adjacent tab 3or 4 of the Wrapper of the pad to supplement the frictional contactbetween the stack of wiping members and the engagecl pad surface tofurther hold the stack of wiping members in position on the pad. The tabplaced in overlying relation to the wiping members also helps to resistdisplacement thereof incident to removal of the assemblage from anenvelope like the envelope 15 in which the assemblage may be packed asabove described with reference to the arrangement illustrated in Figure2. The assemblage represented in Figure 4, upon being withdrawn from anenvelope may be held in the hand between fingers engaging the oppositeoutside faces of the folds 6 and 7 -of the pad and the tab 3 may beunfolded so as to aiford access to the then exposed wiping memberswithout touching the body engaging faces of the wiping members and pad.

It is an important consideration that the wiping material is supportedby an integral part of the pad so that the pad and wiping elements maybe removed as a unit from the Sealed container or envelope, the Wipingelements being supported and held in position by a portion of the padstructure during removal. The pad serves the important function ofproviding a sufliciently firm support to hold the wiping members indistended, flat, useable condition, and readily accessible for removalone by one for use as aforesaid. The described arrangement minimizes thepossibility of contaminating the surfaces of either the wiping membersor the pad which ultimately contact the user. Positioning of the wipingelements between portions of the pad accomplishes this objective andalso serves to facilitate the ackaging of the pad in the Wrapper orenvelope and the removal of the product from the package with a minimumof handling.

The described forms of packaged absorbent dressing and stack orassemblage of wiping material, eliminates the time consuming routine ofassembling and distributing unpackaged, Sterilized elements at bedsideor elsewhere as above described and it makes the Cleansing and padchanging operation much less onerous. The package prepared in accordancewith the described arrangement may be Sterilized by the manufacturer andsuitably packaged to maintain their sterility for a sutiicient period oftime within which they can be reasonably expected to be put to use inthe manner explained. Hence, the described packaged pad and wipingmaterial may also eliminate the need for sterilization at the point ofuse. However, the package is one which may be I'eadily Sterilized by thehospital shortly before distribution to the patients.

As already indicated, one of' the important benefits of the describedarrangement when tissue wiping members 'are used, is the disposabilityof the wiping tissues through toilet facilities which eliminateshandling of the wet, messy wiping material for placement in 'a bag or ona wrapping paper. A further benefit of the disposable tissue arrangementis that it is very practicable to provide Wiping Sheets of sufficientsize to adequately cover the patient s hand for cleanliness and wherebya larger area can be wiped in a single strolre. Furthermore, Wiping withabsorbent tissues attains better Cleansing and better cirying than whena fiber pad is used, probably because the tissue material has a bettercapacity for absorbing the lochia.

The described arrangements are easy to produce both manually andautomatically so that they are economically practicable, as well ashygienically practicable.

Various changes in the described arrangement may be made while retainingthe principles of the described construction.

We claim:

l. An absorbent dressing package comprising an absorbent dressing havinga pad, a Wrapper enclosing said pad and having attachment 'tab portionswhich extend from the opposite ends of the pad, said pad being foldedintermediate its ends into U-shape and said tabs being folded over therespectively adjacent end portions of the folded pad, a wiping memberpositioned between mutually overlying portions of said absorbentdressing so as to be thereby held in assembled relationship to thefolded pad, and an envelope enclosing said folded pad and Wiping memberand holding the same in the aforesaid assembled relationship.

2. An absorbent dressing package comprising an absorbent pad folded uponitself, a folded sheet material Wiping member positioned intermediatethe tnutually overlying portions of the folded pad, and an envelopeenclosing said folded pad and holding the same in the aforesaidassembled relationship, said folded Wiping sheet being folded on itselfto provide on each face of the folded sheet a readily accessiblelip-like portion by means of which the folded sheet is adapted to begripped and removed from the pad and unfolded and positioned over thehand for use, the provision of such lip on each face of the folded sheetServing to insure accessibility of such a lip with the folded sheetresting on either portion of the pad when the pad is removed from saidenvelope and at least partially unfolded.

3. An absorbent dressing package comprising an absorbent pad including aWrapper folded upon itself, said pad having attachment tab portionswhich extend from opposite ends of the absorbent pad and arerespectively folded over the opposite outside faces of said folded pad,a wiping member positioned in overlying relation to one of the folds ofsaid pad and under the tab which is positioned thereon, and an envelopeenclosing said folded pad and wiping member and holding the same in theaforesaid relationship to each other.

4. An absorbent dressing package comprising an absorbent dressing havinga pad, a Wrapper enclosing said pad and having attachment tab portionswhich extend from the opposite ends of the pad, said pad being foldedintermediate its ends into Ll-shape and said tabs being folded over therespectively adjacent end portions of the folded pad, a wiping memberpositioned between mutually overlying portions of said absorbentdressing so as to be thereby held in assembled relationship to thefolded pad, and an envelope enclosing said folded pad and Wiping memberand holding the same in the aforesaid assembled relationship, saidWiping member being an absorbent sheet which is first folded to providea central web and a pair of Z-folded web portions respectively onopposite sides of and connected to the opposite edges of said centralweb and which is then folded upon itself into U-form.

5. An absorbent dressing package comprising an absorbent dressing havingan elongated pad, a Wrapper enclosing said pad 'and having attachmenttab portions. which extend from opposite ends of the pad, said paclbeing folded onitself intermediate its ends and said tabs beingrespectively folded inwardly of the length of the pad over adjacent endportion thereof, a stack of wiping members positioned on a portion ofthe folded pad and between the same and another portion of said foldeddressing which is in lapping relation to said pad portion as an incidentto the aforesaid folded condition of the dressing, each of said wipingmembers being an absorbent sheet which is folded on itself to provide alip-like portion Within the folded area of the sheet and on the surfacethereof which is exposed When the dressing is unfolded suliiciently tomake said stack of Wiping members accessible for removal from said padportion, and an envelope containing and holding said dressing and wipingmembers in the aforesaid assembled relationship.

6. An absorbent dressing package comprising an absorbent dressing havinga pad body, a Wrapper enclosing said pad body and having an attachmenttab portion which extends from one end of the pad body and is foldedover the adjacent end portion of the pad body, a Wiping memberpositioned between said tab and said pad body so as to be thereby heldin assembled relationship to the pad body, and an envelope enclosingsaid folded pad and Wiping member and holding same in assembledrelationship.

7. An absorbent dressing package comprising an absorbent dressingincluding an elongated pad enclosed in a fluid pervious Wrapper, saidabsorbent dressing being folded on itself intermediate its ends, awiping member 8 Positioned between folded portions of said absorbentdressing so as to be thereby held in assembled relationship to thefolded dressing, and an envelope cnclosing said dressing and Wipingmember and holding the same 'in the aforesaid assembled relationship.

8. An absorbent dressing package comprising an i11- tegral absorbent padbody folded upon itself, a Wiping member ositioned between foldedportions of said pad body so as to be thereby held in assembledrelationship to the folded pad body, and a container enclosing said padbody and member and holding the same in the afor said assembledrelationship.

References Cited in the file of this atent UNITED STATES PATENTS UNITEDSTATES P-'I`ENI' OFFICE CERTIFICA'I'E OF CORIIECTION Patent N0.2,83434159 May 13, 1958 I Charlotte I., Rickard et ti. It is herebcertified thet error -ap pears in the printed specification of the above"I lumbered Patent requiring correction and that the said Letters Patentshould read as corrected below.

Column 6 3-, line O', after the' vrorci at pac'" Strike" cut "ncludipgB. Wrapper", and insert the same after "pa`'u in line 41, Same colulllri li Sigr 1ed anti s'eale this 11th of November 1958.

(SEAL) Attest:

Ea. XIIINE- ROBERT C. WA'I'SON Attesting ORicer Commissioner of Patenta

